(The Fantasy 5 is a quick-hit wrap-up of some of the biggest news topics of the day for fantasy football players, giving you advice you need to improve your team.)
The final week of the preseason is upon us, which means most of us have wrapped up our fantasy football drafts as we look forward to Week 1.
The biggest news of the week was Matthew Stafford’s new contract, but from a fantasy perspective, it doesn’t have much bearing. It’s been a slow start to the week, but that doesn’t mean nothing has happened.
Here’s a quick recap.
1. Steelers add TE Vance McDonald in trade with 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers and Pittsburgh Steelers have agreed to a deal that will see tight McDonald head to Pittsburgh and team with Ben Roethlisberger and company.
McDonald has 64 receptions for 866 yards and seven touchdowns over the past four seasons. He has never been relevant in fantasy outside of DFS tournaments, but there was some hype for him leading into the 2016 season.
McDonald lands in a much better spot in Pittsburgh, however. The Steelers have Jesse James on the roster, but James is nothing special from a fantasy perspective.
McDonald played in just 10 games last year, and he caught 24 of 43 passes for 391 yards and four scores in that span. He scored 0.28 fantasy points per opportunity, which tied for 11th among all tight ends — just ahead of Travis Kelce.
McDonald’s 0.14 fantasy points per snap also ranked 11th — just ahead of Greg Olsen and Martellus Bennett.
That’s some great company to keep in the efficiency department. McDonald won’t see enough volume to be a fantasy TE1 (what with Le’Veon Bell, Antonio Brown, and Martavis Bryant to feed), but he’s definitely a strong TE2 and will be a popular streaming option this season.
2. Jets attempting to trade Matt Forte: All systems go for Bilal Powell
The New York Jets are reportedly shopping around Forte prior to the final roster cuts. While old and battle-worn, Forte was actually a decent fantasy running back last year, gaining 813 yards and scoring seven touchdowns. He was the No. 18 running back in fantasy.
But Powell shined down the stretch for the Jets, and he was a far superior rusher last year. Powell’s 5.5 YPC average dwarfed Forte’s 3.7 mark. Powell also saw 69 targets, fourth-most among all running backs.
The news that the Jets are shopping Forte is not a complete surprise — he’s a veteran on a team that will be lucky to win four games — but it does improve Powell’s stock.
If the Jets are unable to unload Forte (the most likely scenario), he’ll still likely split duties with Powell. But it’s clear that the Jets are comfortable giving Powell the reins, and even if Forte sticks around, Powell should be the lead back. Powell is a great value as the No. 28 running back coming off draft boards.
3. Ezekiel Elliott beefs up legal team — could his suspension be delayed?
Elliott reportedly added big-wig NFL lawyer Jeffrey Kessler to his team, and his appeal — which began Tuesday — is expected to last until Thursday.
The fact the appeal is happening is not noteworthy. The fact that Elliott (and the Cowboys) are fighting this with everything they have is.
Remember back in 2015, when Tom Brady was supposed to be suspended for the first four games? Brady ultimately had that suspension overturned in court with the help of Kessler, and he ended up playing the entire 2015 campaign.
That battle obviously continued into 2016, but that’s beside the point; Brady played all of 2015, and the door remains open for Elliott to do the same here in 2017.
While an immediately overturned suspension is unlikely, a reduction is certainly possible. Elliott could also take the case to court, in which case his suspension would likely be “on hold” until the court case ran its course — which would potentially mean that Elliott plays all of 2017.
This is a fluid situation, and Elliott isn’t exactly a bargain (his ADP is now in the early- to mid-second round), but the fact that the door is still open makes Elliott a tremendous risk/reward option. You just have to structure your entire roster around him and his situation, if you choose this route.
4. Josh McCown named Jets starting QB, but it’s still a barren wasteland at receiver
More Jets news: The Jets made the only obvious choice official this week by naming McCown their Week 1 starter. McCown has far more experience than Bryce Petty and Christian Hackenberg, and he gives the Jets the best chance to win some games in 2017.
But the Jets still aren’t going to win many games in 2017.
As a member of the Cleveland Browns in 2015, McCown played in eight games. He completed 186 of 292 passes (63.7 percent) for 2,109 yards, 12 touchdowns and eight interceptions. That means he was on pace for over 4,200 yards and 24 touchdowns. Not too bad, actually.
Except, 4,200 yards and 24 touchdowns isn’t enough in fantasy. That’s actually pretty close to Russell Wilson’s stat line from last year (4,219 yards, 21 touchdowns), and Wilson wasn’t even a top-12 fantasy quarterback.
McCown is only viable as a DFS punt play, and he should be far down the list of weekly streaming quarterback options (although he’ll be serviceable in that arena once or twice).
5. Injury roundup
- Titans wideouts Corey Davis and Eric Decker both returned to practice on Tuesday. They appear on track for Week 1 against the Oakland Raiders.
- Joe Flacco has started throwing again, but he’s still not cleared to practice. Ravens coach John Harbaugh says Flacco will be ready for Week 1, but time is running out.
- Tyrod Taylor is still in concussion protocol. He suffered the concussion in the team’s third preseason game. He remains a borderline QB1 thanks to his rushing ability.
- Oakland’s 2017 first-round draft pick, Gareon Conley, has been removed from the PUP list. His return will be an immense help to the Oakland passing defense, but until then, you can safely load up on quarterbacks and wideouts facing the Raiders.
- Broncos QB Paxton Lynch is set to miss several weeks with a shoulder sprain. This doesn’t have much bearing in fantasy, given that Lynch already lost the starting job to Trevor Siemian, but it does entrench Siemian as the man in Denver.
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